Angel of Death: Second Lives
by frekat
Summary: Leriko was expecting fun when he logged onto Sword Art Online. But things aren't as they seem, especially when Akihiko Kayaba chose him to fill a special role that only he could fill. He then finds out that he's trapped inside of the game where he can die in real life if he dies in the game. Leriko then sets out on a journey that can only be describes as legendary with his friends.
1. A new world

**Hey, hey, hey! It's frekat. The author of this story…you don't know me? THEN WHAT ARE YOU DOING READING THIS!? Kidding. Anyways, this is a rewrite of my crappy and, did I say crappy, story, Angel of Death?! This one'll be way darker and hurting than the other one. Not even going to look at the story of that one. Just gonna write it. So it's kinda not like a rewrite but a completely different story. Didn't even finish the other one. Yup, I didn't. Stopped it like two months ago. Anyway, aiming for 10K word chapter every two weeks, 'cos, you know, I have a life and school is a bitch (what am I kidding? Everyone knows that). Heh, well, hope you enjoy it. Oh, it's going to be third person all the way! Maybe some first person segments. Meh, depends if the readers want it. Well, BEGIN!**

**{Edit! I changed some minor stuff in this chappy, so if you're rereading this you may notice what I changed.}**

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He flipped his phone out as it beeped, sighing while doing so. He was sweating as he'd been walking for half an hour straight in the direct sunlight while people that haven't seen him before would give him strange looks as they'd think that he's a cross dresser. With his slender, female physique leaning against the brick wall of a building, he read the message that his friend sent him a few seconds ago ago, _'Well, I've got good news, kid! My dad secretly pre-ordered SAO for me. He said he doesn't like this new VR stuff and prefers sitting on his ass all day playing Diablo. Anyway, I'll meet you on as Saito.' _

He chuckled to himself as he covered his eye from the sunlight, 'Today's the day. I'll reach the top spot on the leader boards for sure.' He thought to himself as he waved to a group of girls that were in his class. They politely waved back and blushed when he smiled at them, his foreign and feminine smile like a prince's. He fanned himself for a bit and undid the very top button of his shirt, his whit button-up shirt that he wore on his days off not fending off much heat, 'To hell with it. I could spend ages in air con while playing SAO.'

He was originally born in Australia and lived there until six months ago. He and his friend moved to Japan because their parents thought they were interested in the culture when it was actually for the earlier release of the infamous game Sword Art Online. They, of course, studied for a whole year prior to this so they could easily read and write the language the people spoke. They could speak it like they were natives and their writing and reading was average. The boy straightened himself up as he was slouching a bit and continued his walk back to his house as he came back from the grocery store, the last month of Autumn killing him with its weird heat levels and tree murdering winds.

He was one for the cold, not the heat, and spends winter dressed like it was summer while everyone around him was wearing their thick coats and scarves while huddling close to the people near them in attempts to secure what little warmth they possessed. They thought he was crazy when he walked in the direct rain with a smug smile on his face with closed eyes while he enjoyed the sensation. He wasn't a masochist or sadist either, making it a bonus to his unique personality that no one could figure out.

He swung open the front door of his house and took off his black skate shoes, the thought of himself turning into some sort of human puddle urging him to pick up his pace so he doesn't turn into one. He put the groceries he bought at the store in their respective locations and wondered up a flight of stairs and into his room where he shut the door and turned on the air con.

The temperature was set so it was _very_ cold and he smiled as he insert Sword Art Online's game chip into the fairly new Nerve Gear he bought. It had a small dent in it from the time he dropped it on his desk chair which made him afraid to use it in case it messed up his body, which didn't happen, much to his relief. Some flecks of paint were scratched off from his fairly short finger nails to reveal the metallic material it was made of.

He plugged the charger into his desktop computer that was conveniently placed next to his black wood double bed with the red sheets and the window view in front of it then placed the helmet on his head. He lay on his bed and looked around at his video games for his game consoles and silently apologised to them as he knew that he wasn't going to play them for a while, no matter how new or old they were.

He calmed his breathing and shoved away his excitement while he looked at the digital clock that was in the corner of the small visor that was where his eyes were. It was twelve fifty-nine in the afternoon and the servers were expected to open when the clock stuck one. The clock did strike one and he immediately yelled 'link start', his vision turning white with various colours and prompts appearing to make sure his sense were fine, of which they were, with the exception of an itch around his back area of which he couldn't itch, much to his disappointment.

The login screen came up and it was a blue screen on a white background and he didn't have an account, so he entered in the username 'Leriko' and input a password that only he knew. A prompt came up saying that that account didn't exist and was asking if he wanted to create that as an account. He pressed a blue button with a white circle in it, guessing that that was the accept button as the other one was red and had a white 'X' shape in it.

The screens faded away to reveal a character creation screen of which a pre-set was already displayed. The pre-set was of a female with long black hair that went to the waist and dark, black eyes that accompanied a beautiful smile. The pre-set was wearing a black skirt with a black long sleeve shirt and black fingerless gloves. Black thigh boots were sat upon the feet and black tights went up the rest of the thighs and stopped just below the kneecaps.

The body was slim with thin legs and arms and it had a fairly large bust, the overall body size approximately one hundred and seventy centimetres in height with the weight of forty kilograms. 'Yes/No?' A prompt appeared, asking him if he was going to accept it. Being too lazy to create his own character, he kindly accepted, knowing that no one would know if he was actually a female. In the real world, he actually had a feminine body, face and voice, making him the look of a female model.

He was beautiful with his waist length white hair and sparkling blue eyes that could suck anyone's soul in. His body was slim, along with his arms and legs, and the girls keep asking him to show up to school in a female uniform, of which they supplied, and his hair tied back in a ponytail. He did just that and people thought he was a new transfer student of which they were wronged when he told everyone his real identity. The guys were jealous and he kept on getting confessions from various girls, even his third years and juniors. He was in his second of year middle school so he thought relationships were pointless, so he politely rejected them.

A screen appeared once more, asking him for the name he wanted to go under. He wrote 'Leriko' in English letters and hit accept. His vision turned white once more to clear up, showing the spawn plaza of the wondrous world called Aincrad. There was a large tower made of a yellow-like stone behind him and arches made of the same material surrounded him on all sides, except his south where a wide path went straight for a while before stopping front of a large body of water, leading to the outsides where he can adventure and have fun.

It seemed as if he was the first person in there as it was silent until various blue lights came from around him, of which players emerged, a mix between male and female. It was then that he noticed his avatar, the bust that he had and the clothes he was wearing, 'Right, forgot about that. Too lazy to create a character, done! Anyway, need a weapon first.' He thought to himself as even more players spawned in, yelling with joy as they've finally entered the world of Aincrad. Leriko set off to find the plaza, not used to the feeling of having breasts and not used to the feeling of having no male genitals. It was weird, just like nothing was there, 'This is weird. Maybe I regret choosing this and not making a male character…no no no, this is fine. I'll get used to it over time. I might make another character later…' He thought to himself as he made a left into a smaller street that was filled with stall vendors.

He looked around and one particular item caught his interest. A raven black coat was hanging from a stall and he had the urge to just take it. He approached the store and looked at the coat once more before speaking, "How much for the coat?" Leriko's voice was the same as his real life one, feminine and high pitched, making the part of him being a female even more believable. He didn't have an Australian accent when he spoke Japanese and when he spoke English he didn't have an accent either except for a little tone of a type of British accent, giving him that extra charm. The vendor rubbed his chin before looking Leriko up and down, determining if it would fit.

"Yes, yes, it would fit. It's one thousand Col." Leriko sighed before running his fingers through his hair and sighed again.

'Col must be the currency. Considering that I just started, I hope I have enough to buy it.' He put his hand back to his side and chuckled to himself, "I'll take it." A white screen appeared asking if he wanted to buy the coat and the screen also had his current balance. He currently had one thousand Col and he cringed before pressing accept, watching his money disappear, 'How am I supposed to kill things now? I don't have enough money for a sword so I'm probably going to have to beat mobs up with my fists.' He thought as the NPC vendor handed him the coat with a smile, waiting for Leriko to put it on.

He swung it round his shoulders and put his arms through the sleeves, letting it slide down onto his body and then readjusting the collar so it stuck up. The coat, in all of its actuality, went down to Leriko's ankles and was slightly open in the middle, the edges of the cloth digging into the area between his breasts. The coat reminded him of a family trip he went on to New Zealand to go skiing. It was similar to one he wore while he snowboard down a slope to only fall over and slide down, the snow gathering on his body until he stopped at the bottom to get laughed at bystanders. On that day, a few people were hurt.

Leriko walked around the streets, looking at all the swords, maces and various other weapons they had until he came across a sword he absolutely wanted, even if it costed him his life. It was made from an iron, the blade made from a shining black that was a meter long with the hilt made from a dark wood with a red jewel inserted in the silver pommel of the sword and the grip a pitch black. He approached the vendor and players were inserting themselves in the alleys now, looking for weapons and items that would help them with their quest, "How much for the sword?" Leriko asked as he picked it up and examined the blade.

"Ohoho, a new adventurer, aye? Well, since you're going to be venturing into those dangerous fields, how about you take it for free?"

'Oh. My. God. This is real, right? Is he seriously giving me this sword for free!?' A prompt appeared and Leriko immediately slammed the accept button, the vendor reaching down beside him and sliding it in a black leather sheath to then passing it to Leriko who slung it over one shoulder and under the other shoulder, making it diagonal with the sword's grip sticking out so it was out past his left shoulder where he could grab it easily. He heard a ting and looked around until he noticed an icon next to a digital clock that was much like the one on the NerveGear.

He tapped the icon and a window popped up with a message that was like a walk through tutorial for beginners, 'Welcome to the world of Sword Art Online Player Leriko! This is a quick tutorial that will teach you how to open and close your inventory. First, raise your right hand then simply swipe it. After that, explore your inventory by tapping the icons with your index finger or fingers!' He dismissed the message and did exactly that and, much to his surprise, came up with a fairly simple interface that anyone could use.

He looked around and noticed that other people didn't get the message, thinking that the message wasn't suspicious at all. He wandered back down the streets to find an empty alley, quickly sidestepping to narrowly dodge a dark-haired boy that was sprinting down the street, "Thanks!" He yelled before he turned the corner to go down the alley that Leriko just came out of, 'Strange. It's as if that kid knew where he was going.'

He wondered through the town and to the the edge of it, a large gate that led to luscious green plains with flowers and grass in front of him. The field bought a weird warmth of heart to Leriko as he stepped out of the safe zone and into the zone where you could potentially die. He walked and walked until a creditable yell could be heard from over a ridge where Leriko was, disrupting his silence and peace to, in a sense, grab his attention so he could go assist the person. Unknown to him, a red robed figure was watching from atop the sandstone wall that lined the edges of the city, "Yes, he'll be a good choice…better get to work then…" The figured then vanished in a blue light.

Leriko sprinted down the hill blindly and pulled out his sword with his right hand and swung it around, dealing very little damage to the mobs around him. His sword suddenly ignited into a glowing blue and one of the mobs, which looked like a boar, was immediately sliced in half and killed, shattering into thousands of blue polygons that flittered and shined like glass in the blowing wind. His sword glow blue again and one was sliced in half horizontally and another diagonally, killing off the mobs effectively with a red particle type of object splattering on the grounds, giving off the effect of blood, and Leriko frowned in surprise.

He turned towards a person that, in Leriko's eyes, let off the yell and gave a small smile to show that he was no threat. It was a girl that was around his height with short brown hair that was tied into a short ponytail at the back with brown eyes that seemed tired. She had a slim frame with a bit of muscle and fairly large breasts, her purple shirt and leather chest guard pressing against her, showing her curved and robust figure, while the girl sighed, sitting flat on her rear on the grass.

Leriko approached the girl and held his hand out, which she firmly and happily took, and pulled her up off the ground and onto her feet, "Well, that was…interesting. First battle and I already saved a damsel in distress." Leriko smirked while the girl blushed and looked away, slowly rubbing the back of her head. He noticed a katana loosely hanging at her side and he held out his hand once again, "I'm Leriko." She softly shook it with a smile and Leriko grinned at her calmly, making the girl blush again, even though he was a female character, and look away.

"Sakura. My name's Sakura. Why don't we stick together until either of us have to log off?" Leriko chuckled inwardly to himself, stepping back a bit to give her some space. The wind was gentle out on the field and Leriko liked it, the wind tussling his hair and blowing against him gently.

"It's easy as one two three. I can send a friend request, you know. Then we can play together when the other's online." He swung open his menu and scrolled down the various tabs, of which he had no idea what they did, and came across one of which the name gave away its purpose. He pressed on the tab, conveniently name 'Friends', for another screen to come out to his side with an empty list and various commands that were placed in positions that gave away their purpose.

He pressed on a button that had a plus sign in grey and a screen came up saying, 'Enter the name of recipient or stand in front of a person to auto send a request.' Leriko faced Sakura full on and waited for the request to be sent. Suddenly, the screen dismissed itself to replace itself with another one that said, 'Request sent'. Leriko noticed that all the writing had been grey or white so far and mentally complained about different colour choices.

They could've chosen red or black, even green for that matter, and made the background for the menus different colours. Leriko received a message and frowned, wondering who it could be from and opened it. He grinned when he saw that the sender was Saito, his friend from real life, and read the message as fast as he can, _'Hey, kid. I knew you'd go under this name as you always do. Anyway, I'm at the plaza so come get me or I'll whoop your ass.' _

Leriko inwardly chuckled and mentally prepared himself to beat his friend until he regret mentioning that, Leriko being a person that loves to be on top. He doesn't care if he's the top dog of everyone, but he still wants to be near the first place on the leader boards, "Ok, we're going back to town to collect my idiotic friend from real life and then we'll help him get some gear because he probably just logged in." Sakura nodded and followed intently as Leriko ran down and through the fields of Aincrad.

In just a few minutes, Leriko not having forgotten the path he walked not long ago, arrived at the edge of town and slowed down to a slow walk. There quite a bit more people in this area that were preparing themselves to go out and venture the town, but there were also guys flirting with the women that, in Leriko's perspective, were most likely guys like him. But fat and sweaty nerds.

They took their time and made their way back to the spawn plaza in fifteen minutes and Leriko couldn't find his friend. He opened the menu and opened the message again to reply to it, _'I'm here. I can't see you. There's like, fifty people lounging around here so wave your hands in the air or something.' _It was true, Leriko didn't know what his friend's avatar would look like and to make it harder, there was approximately fifty people just lounging around, doing nothing except for talking or waiting for people.

Sakura saw a set of hands shoot in the air and start flailing around like a madman and she couldn't help but giggle and attract Leriko's attention, "What's funny?" He asked only to get a point to the location, "God dammit, let's go before he kills me for not coming fast. He's kinda self-conscious in a weird way." They weaved their way through the crowds and Leriko stood in front of his friend that had named himself Saito, "Hey. Sorry for taking long. Had a bit of business to do." Saito grinned and hung his arm lazily over Leriko's shoulder with a mischievous grin.

Saito took the form of a twenty year old man, crimson hair hanging down to his shoulders with one of his eyes covered by it. His eyes were a reddish-purple, his eyes also cloudy and mysterious looking. He was a bit taller than Leriko's avatar and he was also a bit muscular. He wore black pants and a white shirt with beige gloves that were made from cloth and a grey chest plate that had a black belt slightly below it.

"Of course you did." Saito perversely replied, Leriko blushing furiously as he understood what his friend had implied.

"NOT IN THAT WAY, PERVERT!" He yelled out, getting everyone's attention in the vicinity, "Listen, you know me and pre-sets. Anyway, my friend Sakura over here doesn't know that I'm a guy and I'd like to keep it that way," Leriko whispered that, in hopes that Sakura wouldn't hear. It actually worked, Sakura looking on in confusion, while Leriko sighed, noticing how empty handed his friend was, "We need to get you a weapon first then we'll go kill some things."

He spoke in a monotone and shrugged Saito's arm off of his shoulder before turning to Sakura and sighing with a frown, "This is Saito. He's a huge idiot so please, take care of him when I'm not around." She nodded and held out her hand to Saito.

"Hey, I'm Sakura. Nice to meet you." Saito took it while Leriko was grinning, Saito forcing a blush back as he shook Sakura's hand with a sheepish smile.

"Likewise. Guess you know my name because of miss loudmouth over there." Saito waved his hand at Leriko with a comical smile that had no effect on the two, much to Saito's dismay. Leriko clapped his hands together and put on a serious face that was all too familiar to Saito, Leriko using it many times when Saito messed around in serious or important situations, "We need to get him a weapon. My badass coat agrees as well, so let's hurry then let's go kill some things. Well, boars to be precise."

Sakura and Saito both agreed so Leriko took the lead again with Saito on his right, talking about the realism of this game with Sakura trailing not far behind them, seeming lonely as Leriko only listened and said nothing. It was true, the realistic look of the game was perfect and it entranced Leriko almost hypnotically. When someone is playing as their character, stimulated feelings and effects are created in the persons consciousness, tricking the brain into thinking that what they're doing is actually happening. It was a complicated process that Leriko didn't understand, though Leriko wanted to know how it works since he's interested in neurology.

"Sakura, what's wrong? Why don't you join in the conversation with us?" Leriko offered gently with his craned almost backwards, Sakura shaking her head, not wanting to interrupt Leriko and Saito.

"I'm fine. I've got nothing to talk about." Leriko frowned at her reply.

"Surely you do," Leriko turned his head towards Saito and leaned over to his ear, "Sorry, going to have to drop you on this. You can take the behind roll, if you want." Leriko whispered, slowing his pace so he was in line with Sakura, the girl visibly nervous. Leriko quickly terminated Sakura's nervousness by talking about different types of video games, speeding up the time for them. They stopped talking when they ended up in the middle of the alleyway that Leriko was in a while ago, "Right, pick a weapon that you like and then buy it. I want to get to level five before I have to log off." Leriko said disinterested, Saito glaring slightly at Leriko.

"Right, right, your top dog disorder coming into play." Saito instantly received a punch in the face and he stumbled backwards, falling onto his back while he clutched the area where Leriko's fist hit him, "Wow, you can't even hurt me with your puny punches! Haha, I always knew you were weak!"

"It was designed so you don't get hurt, idiot." By now NPCs, for some reason, and players alike had all of their attention at this display.

"If you try harder I'm sure you'll beat the system." His face was stomped on and his head went effectively into the brick pavement, pinning his head from moving but getting a perverted sight that somehow gave him a nosebleed, "Oi, perv, stop looking, you know? It may be a game but they still need their privacy!" A guy from the crowd shouted and everyone laughed, angering Leriko, even though the person was half protecting him and half offending him. Leriko cracked his knuckles and neck while approaching the guy, confusion written all over his face, "How about we have a duel? You offended me and you offended my friend. You know, we go a long way back, like, since the sixth grade. So his offences are my offences."

"Heh, what can a girl like you do to a guy like me?" Leriko maniacally laughed sarcastically before drawing his sword.

"Everything that you'll never do." Leriko said softly, shouts of encouragement for them to fight came from the crowd, putting pressure on the boy who he eventually caved in and accepted the duel.

"First, I need to get a weapon, you know? Oh, what do I get if you win? You're getting respect if you win so what do I get?"

"Anything you want." The guy smirked as Leriko sent him a duel request for a one-on-one half health duel, of which he kindly accepted with a counter counting down with a red diamond in the middle that said 'VS' and both player names at the side with a picture of their characters face. The clock hit zero and Leriko made no move, waiting for the guy's response.

He was using a two meter long sword which required two hands and he made an awkward stance, his back bent forward with his sword angled in the air. Lots of people were watching their dispute, approximately one hundred with intrigued looks as the man said one word before dashing at Leriko, "You." Leriko made no effort to swing his sword as sidestepped a slash downwards, intriguing the crowd even more.

He whistled as the man swung his sword to the side, missing as Leriko ducked under it and used his sword to deliver an uppercut, the sword was covered in a blue glow and retracted the man's health to just above half of it and the crowd cheered when it happened. Leriko jumped away from a frenzied kick and countered with a diagonal slash across his chest, reducing his health so it was red. The crowd applauded and whistled when a sign came up that announced that the winner was Leriko, Leriko sheathing his sword while walking away from the man, his two companions following him with awe in their eyes, "How did you do that?" Saito asked, wanting to learn how the hell his friend was so good at the game already.

"Instincts, I guess. Anyway, choose a weapon already. I got nothing from that duel and I'm pissed that that guy was such an asshole."

"Well, at least you told them not to fuck with you." Sakura said and Leriko could only nod as she was right. They fear him now. Saito wondered off and returned a few moments later with a katana that was sheathed in leather at his hip, Leriko nodding quickly before turning on his heel to go out to the area where he saved Sakura. They managed to get there exactly at two in the afternoon, the sun starting to descend from the sky to turn the world into a gloomy night, "Wow, there's a lot of boars here."

Boars littered the fields and grazed the virtual grass, wondering around and waiting for someone to attack them as their code was set like that. Leriko had his sword between the tusks of one of them and Sakura and Saito were taking one on together, 'Saito, that damn player!' Leriko thought as the monster was thrown back onto its two back legs and sliced across the chest, effectively killing it.

Sakura and Saito had finished their monster and the two were talking, Sakura giggling from a stupid story he was telling that revolved around Leriko, "And then her pen exploded and the ink got in her hair! Did I tell you that her hair is white in the real world?" Sakura couldn't help but laugh while Leriko smiled at their interaction.

Leriko wasn't one to be social, he only talked when talked to and he had nothing much to talk about because he mainly watches anime and plays video games in his spare time, not being an interesting person despite the amount of people that talk to him daily. Feeling left out and bored, Leriko wondered off into a forest nearby and smiled when the sun was filtered out by the thick branches and leaves. Trees were everywhere, branching off in different directions and bunched together but wide enough apart that you could walk through them, forming a single path that Leriko followed happily in hopes of finding something valuable or worthwhile.

When the trees started to thin and spread apart, he came across a lone clearing that had a messy mound of mulch and dirt that looked like it was supposed to be dug up. He did just that, getting on his knees and clearing it away to reveal a small treasure chest, the size of his palm. It was black with gold edging and didn't have a lock, raising a question that floated on the edges of Leriko's mind. He braced himself, preparing himself for whatever may be in there, whether it be a Mimic Chest, a trap of sorts or if there was some sort of reward in it.


	2. The Chosen One

2

The chest was flicked open to reveal nothing, just a velvet black inside that was large enough store things. Suddenly, a bright white light started emitting from it, growing larger and larger until the only thing Leriko could see was a blinding white. He closed his eyes in hope of blocking out the light, but he had no success in doing so until it faded. He could only see darkness when the light faded so Leriko opened his eyes to discover that it was night time, the moon shining directly down on him, basking him in the light and giving him a comfortable warmth in his body. Leriko also found out that he was lying down on the floor, much to his surprise.

Leriko sat up and saw a man in a red robe with golden lining, standing with his hands intertwined, waiting patiently, "Welcome, Player Leriko, to the world of Sword Art Online. This is my world, and I've chosen you to be my ace, the Angel of Death, the one that guides the hero to his destiny and the one that challenges my minions." The robed figure's voice was slightly deep and masculine, giving a sense of supreme authority over everything and everyone, like a king that rules over a mighty land.

"Oh, wow, I never thought that I'd be chosen for something important. Where's my sword anyway? I kinda liked it." Leriko muttered, surprised from the sudden announcement and in annoyance when he couldn't see his weapon.

"Well, here's your chance to shine. You'll need a few things. And your sword? I don't know where it has gone." The hooded figure clicked his figures and a scythe fell from the sky and landed next to Leriko. The scythe was predominantly black, the blade having a streak of silver along the edges that shined briskly in the moonlight, blood red markings ran down the black snath of it, a black spear blade tipped with silver sitting at the end of the snath. A red scarf with ripped ends rapped down the snath, the total height of the scythe measuring one hundred and fifty centimetres, "This is beautiful." The robed figure couldn't help but nod, fully agreeing with Leriko's statement.

"The carvings on the snath of the scythe were difficult to conjure." Leriko chuckled and took the scarf off the scythe, wrapping it around his slender neck with the torn parts facing behind him, loosely hanging against his back.

"Oh, one last question, would you like to stay with that avatar, or would you like a free range customization?"

"That sounds nice. I'll customize again." A blue window appeared in front of Leriko and he grinned as he saw the different colours and choices he could have, totalling one thousand different hairstyles, a fully customisable body section, fifty different looking eyes and one hundred eye colours. Leriko flicked through every option and pressed on the one he liked most, the resulting ending in an ultimately fictional character from an anime. His skin was a ghoulish white and he had waist long black hair that ended in various spikes, the front of his hair slightly covering his hair with the sides extending down to his shoulders which ended in spikes, with a dark crimson colour fading into a bright one from the black hair spikes. He had a left eye that was golden and a right eye that was a bright violet and let off a slight glow, illuminating the darkness on his face slightly.

He had the same female body with the same coat, "I think I look pretty cool." He said as the robed figure still stood there, patiently waiting for Leriko to finish.

"Yes, but there's one thing missing, something all death angels should have." He clicked his fingers and a hot pain shot through Leriko's spine, making Leriko scream and writhe on the ground in agony as black draconic wings with crow feathers sprouted from his back, the length being one meter each side with a red hue running through the middle, "Was it worth the pain?" The figure asked and Leriko nodded as he tried flapping them, much to his disappointment when they didn't move a millimetre, "Try clenching the muscles around your shoulders, they should get them going."

Leriko did exactly that, but yelped when the wings slowly fluttered, slowly lifting him into the air, "When you want to descend, lightly release the tension and you'll slowly descend. Be careful to not fully let go or you'll just plummet to the ground. To go forward, lean forward a bit and lean backwards a bit to go backwards. To turn left or right, inch slightly towards the direction and you'll slightly turn. To turn fully, spin your body in the air directly. Now, have a go."

Leriko floated in the air and did loops, sharp turns and accelerated as fast as he could, his body fully horizontal and speeding fifty kilometres per hour. He returned to his previous location and the figure was gone, a single piece of parchment replacing where he stood, 'You are trapped in Sword Art Online until the final level is cleared. You will not fight me, but you will help the other players. You can customise your avatar whenever you want as I've set a tab in your menu and you have a special skill with that scythe. It is called 'Final Judgement.' That is one of them but there are many more for you to discover as you level up. Your friends are waiting, so you better hurry before they think you died.'

The note suddenly burst into flames and Leriko shrugged, not believing a word the paper said before he set himself down just outside of town where his wings disappeared back into his back. He walked into the town and people looked at him, the sight of someone looking like that shaking their souls as Leriko was frightening the other people. He opened his menu and checked his friend list, pressing a command that said 'Location' that showed Leriko a map of where they were. He was quite close. his two friends sitting inside a small inside inn, all shaken up from a message that Leriko didn't hear.

He opened a heavy green door and stepped in with a grin on his face, instantly locating his two friends that were sitting in a corner both that had a small table with dark wood chairs that had red cushioning on them. For some reason, Saito looked like his real self and Sakura looked different, "Hey, Saito, Sakura, it's me, Leriko!" He said as he stood next to the table, his scarf covering his mouth and his scythe in his hands.

The two looked up at him and Saito shook his head, "If you were Leriko, you wouldn't look like that in real life." Saito said while slowly shaking his head with closed eyes. Saito was the same height as his avatar, having a slim body that had little to no muscles on it. He had short ginger hair that sprouted in spikes on his head and large, hazel eyes produced his sight. Sakura had fuchsia coloured hair that was the length of half her back and she had scared looking eyes that were a chestnut brown, "Mouuuu," Leriko pouted, which made Saito blush, and continued speaking, "You don't have to be mean. I'll show you my friends list then." He pressed a button that spun his interface around and the two people clearly looked shaken.

"We thought you died." Saito said with a shaky voice, audibly on the verge of tears.

"I can just respawn…it's not a big deal." Leriko muttered, annoyed by his friend's melodramatic performance.

"DIDN'T YOU HEAR HIS MESSAGE!?" Everyone was looking towards the three with interested looks on their faces.

"Nope. What message?"

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?"

"I'M SORRY I PASSED OUT IN A FUCKING FOREST WHEN I OPENED A TREASURE CHEST!"

"So that's where you went…" Leriko pulled out a chair and sat on it, Sakura next to him.

"Yeah, now tell me about this message."

"A huge guy bled out of the sky and was wearing a red robe that had golden lining. He said that if we die in here, we die in real life and we can't log out either. So we're basically living in here until we beat the floor one hundred boss." Leriko frowned and held his arms over his character's bust, "Also, why don't you look like your real self? Everyone got their real bodies and faces." Leriko shrugged and thought up a reasonable excuse that could work.

"I was passed out in a forest so I'm pretty sure that didn't apply to me."

"He gave us a mirror which did that." Leriko opened his inventory and searched through it, going through what was mostly empty slots. He didn't find any suspicious items or items he never had before he passed out so he shook his head. All the people turned back to what they were doing, thinking that the drama was over, "I don't see a mirror. But do you like how I look?" Sakura sat on her chair in silence, drinking some peach flavoured tea with a stoic look on her face.

"You look like the female version of Death." Sakura mumbled and Leriko giggled while Saito was doubling over from laughter.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Do you like my badass scythe?" He unstrapped the scythe from his shoulders and did a little twirl with it, making Sakura giggle.

"You look cute like that." Leriko blushed when she said that, turning his head away to hide it.

"I'm…I'm going to go to bed now. Anyone else going?" The two people shook their heads and Leriko rubbed the back of his head, "Okay then, night." He walked off to an NPC that looked rather posh, wearing a sort of tuxedo with a slicked back hairstyle, "How much for a room for the night?" The NPC turned towards Leriko and smiled.

"One hundred Col per night." Leriko looked at his money count in his menu and he had one thousand Col again, probably given to him from the robed person.

"I'll take it." One hundred Col was taken from his inventory and a bronze key was given to him, the number twenty-two inscribed on it. Leriko walked up some oak stairs, his boots clacking against them as he did so and reached a thin oak wood door that had a number twenty-two plated on some bronze. He put the key in the lock and twisted it, the door opening with a small push to reveal a rather luxurious room.

The room contained a small circular table made of wood near a corner with two chairs at it, a bed in another corner with a bedside table and a lantern with a wardrobe in the corner opposite the bed, all of the furniture on wooden floorboards. Leriko shut and locked the door, hoping to get a decent night sleep and flopped onto the silvery-white sheets off the bed. He took off his boots his black tights that were under them, throwing them across the room and landing in a pile. His scythe was neatly propped up against the wall, ready if anything bad were to happen. He then stood up, took of his coat, unbuttoned his skirt and slid off his shirt, adding them to the pile of his clothing. In only some black underwear, he got back on the bed and closed his eyes. His attempt to sleep was interrupted by a soft knock on the door, Leriko's eyes shooting open so he was staring at a wooden roof, "Who's there?" He waited a second and sighed before getting up when a response was heard.

"It's Sakura. Can I come in? The last room was taken by Saito." Leriko opened the door and dragged her in before shutting the door, locking it instantly as it unlocked when he opened it.

"What do you want? I was trying to sleep." Sakura's faced turned a light shade of pink and she stuttered when she talked.

"U-um…c-could I sleep w-with you?" Leriko giggled and pat her head, being a head taller which gave him an advantage to do so.

"It's not that hard to ask, is it?" She shook her head and Leriko flopped down on the bed, sighing in a type of euphoria as the softness of the mattress brought back memories that he'd long forgotten. Sakura lay next to him after she unequipped her katana and curled up against his sides. Leriko could feel some sort of moistness around his chest area and he sighed with regret, not being able to understand how scared she must feel, "It's okay," He whispered to her as he stroked her hair, making her go into a full cry of fear, "Everything will be alright," Arms wrapped around Leriko and he pulled Sakura onto him, holding her with her face buried in his neck, "You've got me and Saito to protect you,"

"What'll happen if you both die?" She cried, sobbing even louder, her tears clouding her eyes as they overflowed and ran down her face, devouring Leriko's neck in a warm and damp wetness. Leriko held her checks and pulled her face up, staring into her chestnut eyes that were threatening to suck him in, "If I die…don't even think that that will happen. But if worst comes to worst, run and hide until someone stronger than us comes along…stay with them and live to get out the game. But please, don't forget us, even if it causes a bittersweet pain." Sakura nodded and she hugged Leriko tightly.

Leriko smiled, holding Sakura's head to his chest, letting her hear his heartbeat to reassure him that they were alive, breathing to see another day. She looked up to him with hope in her eyes, hope that crushed Leriko's heart as he knew people would die all around him, no matter how much effort he put in to protect them. They lay there for a few minutes before he heard Sakura's breathing slow down and get shallower, indicating that she was asleep. He got up, put his clothes on, and picked his scythe up off the wall. The door crept open and he slightly flinched when a voice called out, "Where are you going?" He turned his head on his shoulder and smiled a grim smile.

"I'm going out. I'll be right back…" He trailed off as he stepped out the door, his boots clicking against the floor. A pair of arms suddenly wrapped around him and he could feel breasts pressing against his back, forcing a light blush on Leriko's face, "Don't go, please…everyone always leaves me…" Leriko took a shallow breath when some light sobbing was heard again and he turned around in the spot, facing Sakura.

"I need to go…I need to be strong so I can protect everyone…"

"Then let me come with you!" Leriko smiled as he found someone that would be there to protect him and watch his blind spots.

"Ok, better not let me die." He was punched in the shoulder lightly with a muffled laugh, the sad moment from before gone.

"Why would I?" Leriko shrugged and Sakura equipped her katana before they headed out, locking the door behind them and exiting the inn into the darkness where they would hunt. It was chilly, sending chills up the spines of the duo as they reached the gate to a large plain with a forest at the end of it. The field was mostly dusty, the wind carrying the dust and gently pushing it into their eyes as they carried on, Leriko sighing when a pack of five wolves spawned a few hundred meters away from their current location.

Leriko twirled twirled his scythe for the fun of it, nearly dropping it once but flicking it back up with his feet and standing with it at his side, ready to strike. The wolves, appropriately named Dire Wolves, charged at Leriko and Sakura head on as they noticed the two players near them.

When one of them lunged at Leriko, he swung his scythe up and hooked its body on it, impaling it and chucking it away when he swung the scythe to the side. It got back up straight away and charged again, aiming for Leriko's legs. The scythe glow a bright crimson red and was brought straight down from above Leriko's head, impaling the wolf and creating a small hole in the floor while the wolf shattered into millions of glass-like neon blue polygons. Leriko stepped through the polygons and did a heavy spin with the scythe glowing crimson again, this time a darker shade as a wolf went flying and dispersed into polygons when it hit another wolf. Sakura sliced one in half and they went back to back as one howled, summoning more to their location, "Heh, how's your side?" Leriko asked before he flung one in the air with the end of the scythe's blade and spun it around to lunge forward and kill it when he stabbed it.

"It's going pretty good. How are you fighting so well, though? I'm struggling to even kill one of them by myself."

"Eh, it's pretty easy. Follow up when you strike with a sword skill if possible." Sakura nodded and Leriko narrowly dodged the lunge of one wolf. Leriko stumbled backwards from his lack of balance and fell onto his back, becoming an easy target for the mobs. And the Dire Wolves took advantage of the situation.

One jumped on top of Leriko and bared its teeth, going straight for Leriko's neck. On reflex, Leriko's arm shot up in the air to shield himself as the wolf started to move its head, only for it to latch onto Leriko's arm in a split second, "What the…hell…" Leriko grunted as blood started to run down his arm, as well as a burning pain in his arm, "I'm pretty sure you don't feel pain in this game."

"Leriko!" Sakura shouted when she noticed Leriko's position. Sakura was powerless, though, having been cut off from Leriko by a wall of Dire Wolves. Sakura began to tear up as she saw Leriko's avatar turn grainy, flickering in and out of existence every few seconds.

"Get up, Leriko! You can do it! LIVE!" She shouted as the wolves she were fighting on her side growled at her. All of a sudden, Sakura was face first in the ground with a wolf biting her imaginary throat out, "What…?" Sakura muttered as she saw blood pooling around her, along with an excruciating pain.

"Oh no you don't!" Sakura raised her head slightly and saw Leriko slowly pry the Dire Wolf's jaw that was latched onto his arm open with his free hand, screaming when two began to bite and claw at his legs, "I'm not falling to you assholes!" Leriko threw the Dire Wolf on top of him to the side and sat up, grabbing his scythe from beside him and swinging it wildly at the two monsters on his legs.

The two wolves jumped back and snarled at Leriko as he stood up on shaking legs, blood running out of them and onto the floor as his now noticed HP bar slowly decreased, "Sakura, you okay?" Leriko turned around and froze on the spot, scared for the umpteenth time. Sakura was fighting for her life, several Dire Wolves attacking her body that made no effort to move, "Sakura? Hey…Sakura? SAKURA!?"

Leriko stood frozen to the spot, watching as Sakura slowly raised her head with tears in her eyes. Leriko took a step back, shaking his head quickly while muttering 'No' in rapid succession, "This can't be happening, right? Right? THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! This is a game...things like this don't happen in games. DAMN YOU KAYABA!"

With a yell, Leriko charged at the Dire Wolves and impaled a few of them on his scythe, the ones that weren't impaled hit to the side where they lay on the ground with some major wounds. Leriko quickly kneeled down onto the ground next to Sakura and flipped her onto her back, only to slightly gasp at her.

Sakura was severely wounded, cuts and bruises littering her body while blood almost entirely covered her front, "This isn't a game anymore…it's not a game…this has become our life and we can't change it…" Leriko whispered in shock. And then he noticed her HP that was one quarter full and slowly depleting.

"Leave me…" Sakura said as even more Dire Wolves spawned around the area, all focus of the mobs going on the duo.

"No…no no no. You're going to make it back safely. I promise." Sakura grinned weakly at Leriko and raised a bloody hand, using it to rub his head gently.

"I'll just slow you down and get you killed."

"I don't care." Leriko said gruffly, his wings exploding out of his back in an explosion of feathers, "We'll make it out together. I swear my life on it." Sakura was gently picked up and held in Leriko's arms as the Dire Wolves charged at the duo with the intent of killing its prey. Leriko shot up into the air, leaving his scythe behind while the mobs below him growling and snarling.

Leriko flew over to a nearby tree and placed Sakura on a thick branch, quickly manipulating his own inventory to see if he has any health items that could save her life. And then he found one. A simple healing potion that only recovers fifty lost health points.

Leriko pulled it out of his inventory and popped the cap on the clear bottle and raising it to Sakura's mouth, tilting it slightly so she drank the potion. Much to Leriko's dismay, Sakura had passed out when Leriko's wings came out of him, so Leriko had to make sure that Sakura didn't choke on the potion that would save her life.

Leriko sighed in relief when her HP stopped decreasing and began to fill back up very slowly, indicating that she'll live through the probably traumatic experience.

With a hardened expression, Leriko jumped off the branch and flew towards the Dire Wolves, 'I'll kill them all.' Leriko thought as the Dire Wolves turned towards him and growled.

Leriko dropped into the middle of the fray where his scythe was lying on the floor, blood satisfyingly staining the blade. The scythe was thrown high into the air where it spun around several times before stopping mid-air to then fall back to the ground, being caught in Leriko's hands where he spun it around and let it lay on his shoulders, "Let's fight."

* * *

Leriko opened his eyes slowly to see the sunrise in front of him. He sighed slowly and sat up, bringing his knees to his chest as he tried to remember what happened after he set Sakura down on the tree branch. He couldn't remember a single thing that happened, most likely the cause of the melancholic feeling he felt inside of his heart.

"I can only wonder." Leriko muttered as he saw the blood staining the grass all around him with no corpses in sight. Leriko wearily rubbed his eyes as time passed time by quickly, the sun rising halfway up into the sky in a peaceful silence.

That silence, however, was ruined by the sound exquivalent to a modified 'beep' sound. Leriko turned his attention to an icon next to his HP bar. It was fairly simple, just two white speech bubbles inside of a yellow circle.

Leriko tapped on it with his index finger, noticing that his whole hand and arm was covered in dry blood, to get a white box to appear in front of his eyes.

'_Leriko, are you still alive? I can't find you!'_ Leriko stared at the message in confusion for a few seconds, his brain processing what the message actually meant before Leriko's face contorted in surprise.

With the quick movements of his hands, Leriko had managed to send off a reply faster than he read the message, _'I'm fine. Just watching the sunrise with Sakura.'_ That was a lie. Leriko had no idea where Sakura was or where she could be.

"Hey! Someone help me get out of this tree!" Leriko grinned slightly when he heard the sounds of Sakura attempting to climb out of a tree, followed by a quick scream that was accompanied by a loud thump.

Leriko chuckled to himself quietly as he pushed himself to his feet. He received a message a few seconds after he stood up so he read it with sadistic glee, knowing what the message will contain.

'_You dog. Go get her!' _

'_You'll regret ever saying that.' _Leriko quickly replied before walking towards the area where he heard Sakura falling out of a tree. After a minute or two of walking, Leriko found Sakura unceremoniously sprawled on the forest floor, "Are you okay?" Leriko said as Sakura rolled onto her back with an arm over her eyes.

"I think I may or may not have broken my leg." Leriko deadpanned and crouched down to next to Sakura with a stick in his hand. He began poking Sakura in the side with the stick before Sakura grabbed it and snapped it in half, throwing it away with a terrifyingly gentle smile on her face.

"My stick! Why!" Leriko was on all fours, crying as Sakura stood up with her katana raise above her head.

* * *

"That hurt! Why did you do that?!" Leriko cried as he held the top of his head with both hands, blood running down his face as they walked through the town. No one seemed to notice the blood with the exception of Sakura.

"Why is your head bleeding?" Sakura asked as Leriko began to sniffle dramatically.

"I don't know! I want it to stop!" They opened the door to the inn they stayed in last night and entered quietly as they noticed the large amount of players in the small building.

"Hey, Leriko!" Saito seemed to slide out of nowhere with a disturbingly cheerful expression.

"Hey, Saito." Leriko answered monotone in hopes of not having to go through the scenario that will most likely happen.

"So, how was your date with Sakura?" All sound in the inn suddenly ceased to exist, all attention on the three people standing at the doorway. Leriko held a fist in front of himself tightly, so tight that his knuckles turned white, and slammed it down on Saito's head, "Leriko! Why did you do that!?" Saito yelled while grabbing his head.

Leriko dismissed Saito's question and somehow planted Saito's head on the floor with his foot, pinning his head to the ground again. Leriko began to continually stomp on Saito's head while the crowd chuckled quietly in the background.

"Leriko?" Sakura said in the background, Leriko turning towards Sakura with a fiery expression.

"What?" Leriko growled and stomped on Saito's head again when Saito tried to move Leriko off of him.

"Maybe you should stop it before you kill him." Leriko stepped off of Saito and grabbed him by the collar, lifting him off the ground so they were face to face.

"Can you please save those perverted questions for later?" Leriko said that cheerfully with a coy smile, Saito's jaw dropping at the sudden change in personality.

"Are you somehow bipolar?"

* * *

"Why did you have to do that!?" Saito yelled on the floor, Leriko grinning maniacally on top of him.

"You never learn." By this point in time, everyone in the inn turned back to their own conversations. With a sigh, Leriko sat down at a table across from Sakura who was quite shell shocked at what Leriko did to Saito.

"Do you…?"

"No, not really."

"Oh." Sakura sighed in relief when she heard Leriko's answer to a question she didn't even finish asking. Saito dragged himself across the floor and onto a chair next to Sakura where he dropped his head on the table and began to snore.

"Is he really asleep!?" Leriko yelled while he stood up.

"I think so." Sakura said timidly, knowing what Leriko might do to his friend. Leriko walked over to Saito, bent down to his ear and took a deep breath, "WAKE THE FUCK UP!" Saito raised a hand and flipped Leriko off, "You can't say I didn't try." Leriko groaned as he retook his seat.

"…Yeah…" Sakura replied, unsure if Leriko's yelling was actually him trying.

"So, what do you want to do?" Sakura supported her head with a hand and hummed calmly in response.

"Well, we're trapped in a game where we have to fight to escape."

"I still don't believe you on that." Sakura sighed at Leriko's stubbornness.

"We nearly died last night." Leriko frowned slightly and furrowed his brow.

"We did?" Sakura raised an eyebrow in confusion while Leriko lazily twirled some of his hair around a finger.

"You don't remember?"

"Remember what?" Sakura groaned in annoyance when she realised that Leriko was telling the truth. He really didn't remember what happened the previous night.

"Explain to me how you're already level five, then." Leriko shrugged and shook his head slowly, forcing Sakura to sigh in exasperation.

"Well, I have an idea of what we can do, which is off topic." Saito instantly raised his head when he heard Leriko speak that one line, knowing that it will be something incredibly stupid.

"What is it…?" Saito asked tiredly and wearily.

"Let's go on an adventure!" Saito instantly face palmed while Sakura giggled quietly, "Ah, but first, I gotta eat something!"

* * *

**EDIT: I changed A LOT in this chapter. With the fight scene, they never even got hurt in the original, but that's stupid since they don't know how to fight. Also, the scene in Leriko's room. It used to be a weird romance scene. And the rest is pretty much the same as the original with minor changes that probably aren't worth mentioning.**


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